Hey guys, so I just bought an 07 Gs500f, I thought I made out like a bandit because I got the bike with 151 miles on it for 2300 bucks.  Anyway, knowing the miles are so low, it is obvious to assume the bike has done its fair share of sitting.  After getting the bike home in my truck I noticed the front fork seals were leaking but this only happened on the ride home which was about 2 hours. 

Here's my question.... the forks did have light surface rust on them from sitting, and me not thinking too much about it never cleaned the forks off before taking it for a test drive or ratchet strapping the handle bars down in the truck.  So I was wondering, is there a chance that the fork seals may only be leaking from the light rust or dirt that could be trapped in the seal or could they be blown from all the time they've spent sitting without use.  Is it worth buying a Seal Mate, which I have seen many people recommend to clean the dirt out of fork seals, or should I be safe and go fork ( no pun intended) the money over to have the fork seals replaced.  Let me know your recommendations.

Thanks

I do know that if seals aren't lubricated then it's a possibility that they dried and cracked which made them leak. You could try cleaning up the forks and then seeing if they still leak. If you do decide to get new seals if you need them, here is a link to do it yourself if you are handy.

http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=41764.0

Video as well:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cSYiIl8gQk

Good Luck!

If there is any surface imperfection whatsoever on the section the seals act on they are doomed.

Even a pinprick can be enough to cause seals to leak. Chrome itself doesn't rust but If oyou can see rust on them it means the chrome has lifted altogether.

Get a pair of your mums/ sisters/girlfriends/ boyfriends nylons, stretch them between your hands and pass them over the chrome.........if they snag the tubes are scrap!